{"id":74444,"date":"2026-06-23T15:08:42","date_gmt":"2026-06-23T15:08:42","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/crowdfundjunction.com\/blog\/ethereum-foundation-restructures-with-5-clusters-after-cutting-20-of-workforce\/"},"modified":"2026-06-23T15:08:42","modified_gmt":"2026-06-23T15:08:42","slug":"ethereum-foundation-restructures-with-5-clusters-after-cutting-20-of-workforce","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/crowdfundjunction.com\/blog\/ethereum-foundation-restructures-with-5-clusters-after-cutting-20-of-workforce\/","title":{"rendered":"Ethereum Foundation Restructures With 5 Clusters After Cutting 20% of Workforce"},"content":{"rendered":"<p><b>(Originally posted on : Bitcoin News )<\/b><br \/>\n<\/p>\n<div>\n<div class=\"@container mb-[25px] rounded-sm overflow-clip py-0.5 pr-0.5 pl-2.5 bg-success-100\">\n<div class=\"flex flex-col gap-m overflow-clip rounded-[6px] !bg-success-10 p-3 @[420px]:p-m\">\n<h2 class=\"m-0 flex items-center gap-s text-[19px] !text-[#1c1c1c] md:text-[20px]\"><svg xmlns=\"http:\/\/www.w3.org\/2000\/svg\" width=\"16\" height=\"10\" viewbox=\"0 0 16 10\" fill=\"none\" class=\"shrink-0 text-success-100\" aria-hidden=\"true\"><path d=\"M1 1.5h14\" stroke=\"currentColor\" stroke-width=\"2.5\" stroke-linecap=\"round\"\/><path d=\"M1 8.5h10\" stroke=\"currentColor\" stroke-width=\"2.5\" stroke-linecap=\"round\"\/><\/svg><span>Key Takeaways<\/span><\/h2>\n<ul class=\"m-0 flex list-none flex-col gap-m pl-0\">\n<li class=\"m-0 flex items-start gap-s !text-[#434248]\"><span class=\"mt-2 size-2 shrink-0 rounded-full bg-success-100\" aria-hidden=\"true\"\/><span class=\"text-body\">The Ethereum Foundation cut 54 staff members, about 20% of its workforce, as part of a formal reorganization completed June 23, 2026.<\/span><\/li>\n<li class=\"m-0 flex items-start gap-s !text-[#434248]\"><span class=\"mt-2 size-2 shrink-0 rounded-full bg-success-100\" aria-hidden=\"true\"\/><span class=\"text-body\">The EF\u2019s new five-cluster structure prioritizes Protocol Layer work, including post-quantum security and L1 privacy research over short-term market goals.<\/span><\/li>\n<li class=\"m-0 flex items-start gap-s !text-[#434248]\"><span class=\"mt-2 size-2 shrink-0 rounded-full bg-success-100\" aria-hidden=\"true\"\/><span class=\"text-body\">Departing employees receive severance of at least one month per year of EF service, plus transition grants and ecosystem job placement support.<\/span><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<h2>Leaner Structure, Narrower Focus<\/h2>\n<p>The foundation published a <a href=\"https:\/\/blog.ethereum.org\/2026\/06\/23\/ef-structure\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">formal post<\/a> from EF management outlining the new organizational shape. The cuts are effective immediately. The EF described the move as necessary to avoid \u201cexcessive disruption from short-term market movements\u201d and said the new configuration positions it to execute on long-horizon priorities.<\/p>\n<p>The departing employees will receive severance calculated as the higher of one month\u2019s pay per year of service at the EF or the amount required under local law. The foundation is also providing transition support, including help finding positions elsewhere in the Ethereum ecosystem and a small grant to cover costs like career coaching.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cThese decisions were hard, but they are necessary,\u201d EF management wrote in the post.<\/p>\n<h2>Five Clusters Replace the Old Model<\/h2>\n<p>The EF\u2019s new structure organizes its work into five domain clusters plus an operations group and a management support group.<\/p>\n<p>The five domains are:<\/p>\n<ul>\n<li aria-level=\"1\"><strong>Protocol Layer:<\/strong> Focused on scaling and hardening the core Ethereum protocol, including post-quantum security, zkEVM, and L1 privacy research.<\/li>\n<li aria-level=\"1\"><strong>Access Layer:<\/strong> Covers how individuals and agents interact with Ethereum directly, including reading chain state, transacting privately, and maintaining custody without depending on unverifiable intermediaries.<\/li>\n<li aria-level=\"1\"><strong>User Layer:<\/strong> Keeps EF decisions grounded in real user needs through research, personas, and impact evaluation.<\/li>\n<li aria-level=\"1\"><strong>Community Layer:<\/strong> Manages how the EF presents itself publicly and builds relationships outside the <span>crypto<\/span> space, including with civil liberties organizations and open-source communities.<\/li>\n<li aria-level=\"1\"><strong>Institutional Layer:<\/strong> Handles EF engagement with financial institutions, governments, enterprises, and universities exploring Ethereum integration.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<h2>Protocol Work Comes First<\/h2>\n<p>The EF was direct about the Protocol Layer\u2019s mandate. The cluster exists, the foundation said, to make <a href=\"https:\/\/news.bitcoin.com\/ethereum-explained-a-beginners-guide\/\">Ethereum<\/a> \u201charder to corrupt or capture, and easier to rely on when counterparties fail, platforms censor, governments overreach, and intermediaries extract.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>The post drew a clear line between protocol work and market-facing priorities. The Protocol Layer, the EF stated, \u201cdoes not exist to make Ethereum more marketable or focused on short-term interests, or to make it easier to turn into another financial rail controlled by intermediaries.\u201d<\/p>\n<h2>EF\u2019s Goal Separation and ETH Market Performance<\/h2>\n<p>That framing signals a deliberate separation between the EF\u2019s core development mission and commercial or institutional pressures, even as the new Institutional Layer cluster moves to engage governments, enterprises, and financial firms.<\/p>\n<p> <iframe src=\"https:\/\/markets.bitcoin.com\/crypto\/ethereum\/embed\" width=\"100%\" style=\"max-height:500px;height:500px;border:none;overflow:hidden;border-radius:4px\" scrolling=\"no\" title=\"ethereum market data\"><\/iframe> <\/p>\n<p>The announcement comes as ethereum\u2019s market performance has been in the gutter. Over the last 12 months, ether is down more than 26%. At $1,659 per <span>ETH<\/span>, the second-largest <span>crypto<\/span> asset by <a href=\"http:\/\/www.bitcoin.com\/get-started\/what-is-a-market-cap\/\" class=\"lar_link lar_link_outgoing\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">market cap<\/a> is also down more than 66% below its all-time price high of $4,946 per coin. Out of the $2.14 trillion <a href=\"http:\/\/www.bitcoin.com\/get-started\/a-quick-introduction-to-crypto\/\" class=\"lar_link lar_link_outgoing\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">crypto<\/a> market valuation aggregate, <a href=\"https:\/\/branch.wallet.bitcoin.com\/news-contextual-eth\" class=\"lar_link lar_link_outgoing\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">ETH<\/a>\u2019s <a href=\"http:\/\/www.bitcoin.com\/get-started\/what-is-a-market-cap\/\" class=\"lar_link lar_link_outgoing\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">market cap<\/a> of just over $200 billion equates to 9% of the total.<\/p>\n<h2>What Comes Next<\/h2>\n<p>The EF said it will share more details about the new structure and how the broader Ethereum ecosystem can engage with it over the coming weeks and months.<\/p>\n<p>The foundation characterized the new EF as \u201cleaner and more focused,\u201d adding that the people leaving may still contribute to Ethereum from outside the organization. Several individuals who departed in recent months received the same severance terms now being offered to the 54 employees leaving today.<\/p>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<p><a href=\"https:\/\/news.bitcoin.com\/ethereum-foundation-restructures-with-5-clusters-after-cutting-20-of-workforce\/\">Source link <\/a><br \/>\n<br \/><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>(Originally posted on : Bitcoin News ) Key Takeaways The Ethereum Foundation cut 54 staff members, about 20% of its workforce, as part of a formal reorganization completed June 23, 2026. The EF\u2019s new five-cluster structure prioritizes Protocol Layer work, including post-quantum security and L1 privacy research over short-term market goals. Departing employees receive severance [&hellip;]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":19,"featured_media":74445,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"om_disable_all_campaigns":false,"_monsterinsights_skip_tracking":false,"_monsterinsights_sitenote_active":false,"_monsterinsights_sitenote_note":"","_monsterinsights_sitenote_category":0},"categories":[32],"tags":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/crowdfundjunction.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/74444"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/crowdfundjunction.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/crowdfundjunction.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/crowdfundjunction.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/19"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/crowdfundjunction.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=74444"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/crowdfundjunction.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/74444\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/crowdfundjunction.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/74445"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/crowdfundjunction.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=74444"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/crowdfundjunction.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=74444"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/crowdfundjunction.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=74444"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}